Sunday, August 25, 2013

BUSINESS TRANSPARENCY – CONSUMER BENEFITS




The lack of transparency in most mainstream body cares supply chains makes it virtually impossible for consumers to know if the bathroom/personal care products they buy were produced following environmentally and socially sustainable methods.

Indochine Natural, as Malaysia’s first and only certified Fair Trade company with its certification by the Netherlands based World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO), changes many conventional business practices. Our customers are becoming part of an increasing number of consumers globally who are demanding ethically produced body care products.

The key here is transparency, and the ability to trace products from the retail shelf to their origin in order to avoid anonymity and, as a consequence, human rights, labor and environmental infringements. This traceability enhances the confidence of the consumers in their intention to support sustainable development of communities in developing countries.

What does this mean in practical terms for Indochine Natural customers? Our production facility and records are open to public scrutiny, and visitors are welcome to inspect our facilities and talk with workers. We have absolute transparency with our partners. For example, with the group of intellectually disabled who produce our eco-friendly generalhousehold cleaning liquid we pay them above the price they requested to make this product, and they are kept informed of our wholesale price to distributors and the retail pricing so that they are fully aware of the profit margins along each step of the supply chain. In this way, consumers can be assured that these intellectually disabled producers are receiving a fair return for the product they produce.

Pictured here is Indochine Natural’s Dr. Mike on the right with our Stepping Stone staff and members who are a group of rural based intellectually disabled producing our eco-friendly general household cleaning liquid.

You can read more about the Indochine Natural Fair Trade principles, producers, and employment policy HERE.  


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